Ruby

 "...and they lived happily ever after," Granny concluded the story. She would always use the same phrase whenever she narrated fairy tales and mythologies, but I thought it was just bullshit to trick those naive people into thinking that life was wonderful. Life was never perfect nor amazing. Period.

        I stood up and stretched. Listening to a senile old lady telling stories for over an hour was mentally exhausting. She was already settled into her bed, snuggled up with a dog plushie my late Granda gifted her, and I covered her with a comforter to keep her warm. She dozed off almost immediately. Quietly, I tiptoed around the studio, gathered my stuffs and left.

        It was late. The full moon accompanied me as I made my way home. A howl sent shivers down my spine. Oh, no. I thought. Picking up the pace, I tried not to panic as adrenaline rush kicked in. Footsteps were approaching. I started running. Suddenly, something tackled me onto the floor. 

        Luckily, I managed to break the fall before my face came in contact with the ground. It was a close call, yet I scraped my palms and knees. I struggled, but the weight on my back wouldn't budge. Instead, I was awarded with something wet near my temple. The damn dog licked me! 

***

The canine was escorting me home - his tail nestled between his legs after I berated him. It was quiet except for the pad-pad-pad sound the dog made. I was sitting on his back, since I was injured. Once I got home, I shut the door at his face. He whined in protest. I turned on my Spotify to drown out his voice. There was nothing else to do except to wait until sunrise.

        Dawn came. When I unlocked the door, I was just in time to see the huge dog morphed into a human. There were scars on his face - the reason he turned into a werewolf in the first place. I reached up to pat his head and vowed to break the curse at all costs. Even though he was a creature during full moon, he would always be my beloved little brother.

Maya

The rain poured heavily as Maya discovered an unconscious man right at the doorstep. She quickly dropped to her knees and turned him over. The first thing she noticed was the dirt. He was covered in soil, as if he crawled out from the ground. She attempted to wake him but to no avail. Hence, she dragged him into the house only to realise something was not right. It didn't seem like he was breathing. Horrified, she checked his pulse. It was faint, but at least she was relieved that he was still alive. 

"Did you drag in a corpse?" Miya walked in on Maya as she was tending to him. She startled. It was then Miya's expression changed. Upon further prodding, Miya told her twin what happened.

***

Her boyfriend was a stalker. He was possessive and obsessive about Miya. If she didn't reply on time, he'd stalk her using the application he installed quietly in her phone. He was afraid that she might cheat on him and wouldn't even allow any guy to come near her. Everything got out of control when he confronted her for being busy and wouldn't listen to her explanation. He slapped her. She stabbed him. Dug a hole. Buried him.

***

Maya's hands shook as she pulled up the man's shirt. There were no stab wounds. She breathed a sigh of relief. Miya, however, was extremely traumatised by her boyfriend that she grabbed the nearest tool she could land her hand on and lunged at him. Before Maya could stop her, she struck his heart with a fountain pen. He cried out in pain and woke up. 

"Hi, Maya. Miss me?" Maya's hand froze in midair. She blinked. Miya was gone. In her grasp, the pen bleed blood. The man smiled eerily at her. She tightened the hold of the pen and slashed at him. His grin extended outwards as his cheeks tore. He laughed and hugged her tight - so tight she couldn't breathe. She used all her energy to push him away, stab and even kick him - but nothing worked. Darkness took over her.

***

Maya woke up in her bed, screaming bloody murder. She learnt something important - to never watch thriller before bedtime. Someone pounded on the door. It started raining.

Matt

It was a normal day for Matt. As usual, he'd open his eyes, blankly stared into the abyss of nothingness before getting up and headed for his daily routine of shower and breakfast. It was pin drop quiet, not even chatters could be heard, sans the occasional sounds made by animals. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and went outside.

    Cars were halted abruptly everywhere on the road, trash bins were overflowed and swarmed with flies, and stray animals were enjoying themselves without the fear of being chased off. After all, not a single person other than Matt was around.

    It has been 2 weeks since everybody else disappeared. He could clearly remember the day he last saw his beloved wife, Sarah. She was still asleep when he woke up, so he decided to surprise her with breakfast on bed. However, she was nowhere to be seen when he returned from the kitchen. He remembered searching for her frantically, shouting and even calling her phone. The call went unanswered, just like when he ghosted his ex after they broke up.

    After the initial shock, he realised that everyone else in the small town he lived at had vanished into thin air. There was no premonition, and they were gone in a blink of an eye. He freaked out and even attempted suicide, but it was unsuccessful. Thus, he decided to carry on living like a walking dead, alone and miserable.

    As he was taking his walk, he remembered that he ran out of tea so he headed to the nearest Econsave. Grabbing few cans of preserved food, he placed them in an empty trolley as he strolled down the aisle. The smell of rotting perishables was getting stronger. He wrinkled his brows at the stench and turned towards the drinks section. From the corner of his eyes, he saw a dark figure darting across the exit.

    "Hey! Stop!" He shouted excitedly and tailed after the figure. It seemed like a woman, or an adolescent, judging at the size of the body.

    He finally caught up to her as she was reaching the playground. Before he could grab hold of her, she turned and he saw her face clearly. His hand paused in midair and he stopped his pursuit. It was Sarah.

    She dashed towards the slide and hid at the small space under it. Tears sprang to his eyes as he was beyond relief to see his wife once more. He approached her and found out she was crying too, although for a different reason altogether. "Please don't hurt me," she sobbed.

    After consoling and promised that he wouldn't hurt her, he brought her home - their home. She had no memory about herself, nor Matt, so he tried his best to make her feel at home and comforted. However, she left her food untouched and locked herself in the room. He gave her all the space she needed.

    It was until midnight when Matt heard some weird noises coming from Sarah's room. He lit up a candle and went to check the source. The door to her room was slightly ajar so he curiously peeked in. He wasn't ready to see what was inside the room at all. He ran away in terror.

    She was mutilating a poor innocent rabbit. With an eerie smile on her face, she giggled as she hacked at the rabbit with an axe. When the light shone upon her, he could see the crazed look on her face. As he ran away, she started to cackle like a witch and chased after him. He threw the candle at her but it dropped, wiping out the only source of light he could use to see.

    Fortunately, he was familiar with his own house so he was able to navigate himself towards the door easily. He suddenly screamed in pain when he felt a blow at his shoulder. Collapsing near the kitchen countertop, he could see her approaching, as the moonlight shone through the windows. Sarah's face slowly morphed into his ex's. Shapeshifter, he thought bitterly.

    Pinning him down she raised the axe and attempted to hack at his neck. Before she could swing it, he whipped out a pump action shotgun and pulled the trigger. She threw her head back and laughed. "Fool! Guns do not work on me." She raised her axe again. He screamed.

    "Matt!" He opened his eyes. Sarah's face was inches from his and he scooted away in horror but restrained by some wires and tubes. As his mind cleared, he realised he was lying on a bed in the hospital. He breathed a sigh of relief and reached for his wife's hand. His shoulder hurt.

    She was grinning at him. Keeping himself composed, he quickly scanned around for weapon of some sort. His eyes landed on the axe in her hand. He shut his eyes and braced for the pain.

    "Matt!" He opened his eyes. So, it repeated.

An Incident to be Solved

She walked into the house and noticed something was wrong. As she shut the door, the light was completely blocked and the whole house was submerged in darkness. It was eerily silent as she anticipated for its presence.

"Tap...tap...tap..."

Someone was lightly striking the handrail. She turned her head towards the direction of the sound and stared at... Nothing. A sigh of frustration escaped her lips. Apparently, the experiment failed. Again.

Jill was a research scientist, specialising in microorganisms. Her last experiment cost her her job, and her partner. No, he escaped Death, but he turned invisible. Nobody was able to detect his presence as he lost his voice too. Fortunately, she was able to identify him, as they had their own way of communication. Being each other's job partner for a decade certainly contributed to their tacit understanding.

Dipping her hand into a bucket, she approached the stairs and reached out for Jack, her hand dripping with glow-in-the-dark paint. She was unable to touch him physically anymore. Her hand grasped the air. The paint dripped onto the ground, leaving splatters of glowing uneven droplets. Irated, she grabbed the pail and emptied its content in the hope that at least the paint would end up on him.

"Please... Please... Please!"

Tears were rolling down her cheeks. She was kneeling on the floor, scooping the paint back to its container, while muttering the same mantra over and over again.

That was how the police found her. Yet the "paint" she was smeared in smelled rusty and it was coagulated. Upon further inspection, they found a body in the attic, completely drained of blood.

"Jack Crown, 40, was discovered at his former colleague's house. The victim was injected with a new prototype of bacteria which eventually drew out each drop of his blood from his body. The convicted, Jill Rowling, 38, was diagnosed with schizophrenia and would be admitted to Happiness Hospital for treatment."

Fancy a Ride?

The sounds were getting louder. She covered her ears in an attempt to block them out. Few loud bangs echoed, followed by muffled shouts and screams. Bam! Bam! Bam! Her heart beat erratically, as if it was in tune with the desperate knockings. Why? She asked herself...

It began like any other weekday, sunny and bright, ready for early risers to conquer the world. She left her house before dawn, taking her sweet time breathing in the fresh air concentrated with morning dew, then a vehicle stopped in front of her. Irate took over her as her hands trembled. A young man was behind the wheel.

"Hey, girl. Fancy a ride?" 

Her lips were pulled into a tight line and she navigated her way around the car, ignoring the man. Unsatisfied, he stepped on the gas, bringing the car to a stop right in front of her. She bent over to tighten her shoelaces, stood up straight, then dashed off the path so he wouldn't be able to stalk her with his car. Her plan was successful. He shouted in anger and got off the car to pursue her, unbeknownst that she was hiding behind a tall tree. When she was sure that he had gotten not too far, she quickly made a mad rush towards his car, dived onto the driver's seat and stomped hard on the accelerator. She even honked twice to bid him goodbye and she heard him roaring furiously upon finding out that he was tricked by a mere high school student.

***

After some time, the car ground to a halt - one of the tyres went flat. The door was jerked open and the guy dragged her out. "Hello, again!" He wrapped his fingers around her delicate neck and applied pressure. He was expecting whimpers, maybe helpless struggle against his strength, or panicked expression on her face which slowly turned red as the airway was obstructed, but her reaction surprised him. No, it terrified him. Chill ran down his spine and goosebumps broke out across his skin. She was smiling!

Then, he felt something cold pressed against his stomach. When he diverted his eyes downwards, she pulled back with all her might and headbutt him. He collapsed. Unfortunately, the knife didn't pierce through him. She carelessly swiped at his arm as she sheathed her weapon and then proceeded to haul him into the boot of the car.

The sounds were getting louder. She covered her ears in an attempt to block them out. Few loud bangs echoed, followed by muffled shouts and screams. Bam! Bam! Bam! Her heart beat erratically, as if it was in tune with the desperate knockings. Why? She asked herself. Karma. She answered as she put on her headphones, blocking all the sounds, and sighed contentedly.

'X' Marks the Spot

As Mark was about to throw away the old bottle, he saw that there was a piece of paper inside it. Curiosity got the best of him, so he decided to remove the mysterious paper from the bottle. Alas, he realized that there wasn't even an opening! As he was scrutinizing the possibility for something to be inserted into a completely sealed chamber, the bottle slipped from his sweaty palm, landed on a rough rock and then shattered into pieces. He bent down and fetched the paper carefully. It was a map with an 'X' drawn in the middle of the parchment. 

The sun had already set when he reached home. It was merely a tiny hut with simple single-sized bed placed at the corner of the room. A kitchenette was set at another corner of the room; a study table which acted as a dining table when necessary, was strategically positioned in the middle of the room. Mark didn't even bother to lock the door. Nobody in their right mind would break into his house. He did not even own a television nor refrigerator. There was nothing to steal.  That was what he thought until he brought the map home.

He studied the map late into the night and fell into a fitful sleep. In his dream, he was shouting desperately at the map for being confusing and illogical. The map unleashed a grim aura which enveloped him eventually. He jolted awake. The map was no longer on the table where he left it. From the corner of his eyes, he saw a petite figure dashed madly towards the door and into the dark. As quick as lightning, he stalked and managed to catch the sight of the thief. The chase lasted for a quarter of an hour. By then, he was panting heavily from the run. The figure stopped abruptly at the cliff and then jumped. He cried out in horror. Upon reaching the edge, he encountered a bright flash. It temporarily blinded him. He missed his footing and plunged into the blinding white light.

When he finally gained consciousness, the first thing that he laid his eyes on was a gorgeous lady. She smiled at him as he sat up. He inspected his surrounding and an eerie feeling washed over him. It was strangely familiar yet he couldn't place what was wrong. There was a flat-screen television, but it seemed to be mounted to the wall. The screen was wide and of high definition. The language sounded weird and unfamiliar. There were even words written across the bottom of the screen! What were those? He turned to look at the lady again and saw her holding something which looked similar to a rectangular case, but flatter and slimmer. She was doing some bizarre gestures, sweeping across the case and even tapping on it. After that, she put the item to her ear and started speaking into it. Was that a communication tool yet to be discovered by his country, or perhaps, was she just a loony?

A piece of news was broadcasted on the television. He was watching it half-heartedly until an information at the corner of the screen showed the current time and date. It was 19:44 on 18th of April 2024. He jumped to his feet and rushed towards the screen to verify the information. Impossible! He turned around, eyes unfocused, proceeded to grip the poor unsuspecting lady's shoulders and asked her the question he had already knew the answer to: What is the date today?

Mark, a newly-recruited English soldier in 1944, had escaped the war due to his cowardice. He was afraid of death, having lost his entire family to the Pearl Harbor incident. Thinking he had escaped the Grim Reaper, little did he know that he was brought to 2024 by the Goddess of Death herself.

Thirst

noun (person): Muammar                            noun (object): phone                            

noun (place): playground                             adjective (opinion): expensive

adjective (colour): pink                                adjective (size): big

adverb (manner): properly                            adverb (frequency): often

genre: romance                                             genre: mystery

verb (land): run                                             verb (water): drink

verb (air): fly                                                direct speech: "hi"

direct speech: "see you soon"

Alex was the best friend anyone could have. That was what I used to think before Muammar came into our lives. Then, they were the inseparable pair. My eyes glowed green with jealousy as I watched them hanging out at the big playground. It was unfair!

    "Hi!" I nearly jumped out of my skin when Alexa called out to me. She was Alex's fraternal twin sister, who was also my girlfriend. She followed my gaze towards the playground then pursed her lips. "What's so fascinating about Muammar?" 

    It wasn't the first time she questioned me or her brother, but she never paid great attention when admiring Muammar's beauty. He was pink. Only certain individuals would be able to see its real colour, I often reminded myself. They had to look at him properly. 

    Alex noticed us and waved at us to join them. "Race you there. See you soon, loser!" Alexa ran ahead of me and dived into her brother's arms. Muammar squealed in surprised. I ran my tongue over my dry lips as I edged nearer. Before anyone could stop me, I pounced at Muammar, sinking my teeth into his ankle as I savoured the metallic taste of blood flowing from his punctured wound. I often would rinse and drink a lot of water after my kill, but this time I didn't care. Pink blood tasted delicious.

    I heard a click and raised my head. There was a girl recording me with her phone. It looked expensive. Annoyed, I swiped at a stone. It flew towards the phone and the screen cracked due to the force. The girl ran off crying. The twins looked annoyed at me. I grinned in triumph, baring my teeth at them. Who cared about best friend or girlfriend when one could have a scrumptious once-in-a-lifetime feast?